Pre-molded corner flashing for use with sealing members

ABSTRACT

A flashing system including a pre-molded corner flashing member made from polymer material in a single continuous seamless piece. The flashing member has interior flashing portions that meet at an interior corner to conform with a corner of the rough opening, and a membrane flashing portion intersecting each of the interior flashing portions along separate exterior corners, the interior and exterior corners intersecting at a common point. The interior corner of the opening may be sealed by placing the molded corner flashing member in the corner and then running a strip of preferably pre-creased sealing tape or other sealing member along the periphery of the wall opening and overlapping a portion of the sealing member on both the interior flashing portion and the membrane flashing portion.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional PatentApplication No. 60/578,247 entitled MOLDED CORNER WINDOW FLASHING FORUSE WITH SEALING TAPE, filed Jun. 9, 2004, and hereby fully incorporatedherein by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to exterior-type flashing for staticstructures, such as buildings and home. More particularly, the presentinvention relates to an interior corner flashing system for window anddoor openings in walls.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The problems with water leaking into building structures are well known.Various types of flashing and sealing arrangements have been developedfor different parts of a building structure to address these problems.

Flashing for use in roofing is the most common example. U.S. Pat. Nos.5,018,333 and 5,913,779 describe folded flashing members for exteriorcorners of skylights installed in a roof. U.S. Pat. No. 6,681,530describes a one-piece roof flashing for exterior corners, such as aroundchimneys, where the angles of three surfaces are sloped at an angleother than 90 degrees in order to match the slope of the roof.

Another example is the use of flashings around corners of masonry walls.U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,700,512 and 6,122,874 describe flashings that arefolded or pleated for use with exterior masonry corners. U.S. Pat. No.5,815,986 describes a two-piece flashing member for use on an interiorcorner for masonry wall openings.

With the continued improvements in watertight construction of windowsand doors and with the widespread use of house wrap materials likeTyvek®, it is now common for some kind of sealing treatment to beapplied to the wall openings for windows and doors. Most of thesetreatments focus on sealing along the length of the top, bottom andsides of the wall opening. While caulking is sometimes used, a morecommon approach is to use a strip of pre-creased sealing tape that issecured to the edge of the opening and to the adjacent wall. A similarapproach is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,305,130 and U.S. Pat.Publication No. 2003/0056444A1 that describe an L-shaped window flashingstrip with inner lip that fits into rough opening and outer flap that isadhered to wall surrounding rough opening. Another example of thisapproach is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 6,244,001 that describes a strip ofwindow flashing comprised of three panels connected along a common edgeand radiating outward.

The problem with these strip-based approaches is how to best handle theinterior corners in the wall opening. Conventionally, an overlappingtechnique is used that overlaps the piece of tape or strip running alongthe bottom edge with the piece of tape or strip running along the sideedge. For example, in U.S. Pat. No. 6,305,130, sealing of the corners ofthe rough wall opening with the L-shaped strip is addressed byoverlapping the outer flaps of adjacent flashing strips. Thedisadvantage with this approach is that a seam is created at the cornerwhere these two strips meet that can be prone to leaking.

To address this problem, a flexible sealing tape can be used, with acontinuous run of tape wrapped around the interior bottom corners of awindow opening. While generally effective, the flexible sealing tape issignificantly more expensive than conventional pre-creased straightsealing tape. The flexible nature of the sealing tape also makes thetape more difficult to work with and therefore more likely to haveproblems caused by improper installation.

Other solutions for sealing the interior corners of window and wallopenings have been proposed. U.S. Pat. No. 5,899,026 describes afiberglass mesh window flashing sealed by elastomeric liquid flashingmaterial that is applied to the fiberglass mesh once the mesh isinstalled in a window opening. U.S. Pat. No. 6,401,402 describes apre-folded clay coated polyethylene sheet for flashing interior windowcorners.

While there are existing solutions for sealing interior corners ofwindow and wall openings, it would be desirable to provide a bettersolution for sealing and flashing the interior corners of window andwall openings that could improve on the existing solutions for flashingwindow and wall openings in terms of price, performance and ease ofinstallation.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An interior corner flashing system for window and door openings in wallsutilizes a combination of conventional sealing tape or members with apre-formed corner flashing member made from polymer material in a singlecontinuous seamless piece to provide for an effective and economicalsolution for sealing an interior corner of a wall opening. Thepre-molded corner flashing member has interior flashing portions thatmeet at an interior corner to conform with a corner of the roughopening, and a membrane flashing portion intersecting each of theinterior flashing portions along separate exterior corners, the interiorand exterior corners intersecting at a common point. Preferably, the twointerior flashing portions of the pre-molded corner flashing member areequilateral and have a width appropriate for a width of the wall so thatthe corner flashing member can be used on either a left or rightinterior corner of the rough opening. The interior corner of the openingmay be sealed by placing the molded corner flashing member in the cornerand then running a strip of pre-creased sealing tape or other sealingmember along the periphery of the wall opening and overlapping a portionof the sealing member on both the interior flashing portion and themembrane flashing portion.

According to an embodiment of the invention, a flashing system for anopening in an exterior wall of a structure includes a pre-formed cornerflashing member made from polymer material in a single continuousseamless piece. The flashing member includes a pair of generally planarinterior flashing portions each presenting a front and an opposing backside, and a generally planar membrane flashing portion presenting afront and an opposing back side. The pair of interior flashing portionsintersects along a first corner presenting a first corner axis, themembrane flashing portion intersects one of the pair of interiorflashing portions along a second corner presenting a second corner axis,and the membrane flashing portion intersects the other of the pair ofinterior flashing portions along a third corner presenting a thirdcorner axis, so that the first, second, and third corner axes intersectat a common point. When the corner flashing member is positioned in theinterior window or door opening corner with the back side of themembrane flashing portion confronting the exterior surface of the wallexterior membrane and the first corner axis extending along the interioropening corner, the back sides of each of the interior flashing portionsconfront a separate one of the pair of inwardly facing surfaces definingthe opening and the second and third corner axes extending along theperiphery of the opening. The system further includes at least a pair ofadhesive sealing members for flashing the periphery of the opening oneither side of the corner flashing member. Each sealing member sealinglyengages with the membrane flashing portion and one of the interiorflashing portions of the corner flashing member.

In another embodiment of the present invention, a method of installing awindow in an opening defined in an exterior wall of a structure includesproviding a pair of corner flashing members formed from polymermaterial. Each corner flashing member includes a pair of generallyplanar interior flashing portions each presenting a front and anopposing back side, and a generally planar membrane flashing portionpresenting a front and an opposing back side. The pair of interiorflashing portions intersects along a first corner presenting a firstcorner axis, the membrane flashing portion intersects one of the pair ofinterior flashing portions along a second corner presenting a secondcorner axis, and the membrane flashing portion intersects the other ofthe pair of interior flashing portions along a third corner presenting athird corner axis so that the first, second, and third corner axesintersect at a common point. The interior flashing portions and themembrane flashing portion are integrally formed together in a single,seamless continuous piece. The corner flashing members are positioned ina separate interior corners of the rough opening with the back side ofthe membrane flashing portion confronting the exterior surface of thewall exterior membrane, the first corner axis extending along theinterior opening corner, the back sides of each of the interior flashingportions confronting a separate one of the inwardly facing surfacesdefining the opening and the second and third corner axes extendingalong the periphery of the opening. The periphery of the opening betweenthe corner flashing members is flashed with a first length of sealingtape with a portion of the sealing tape overlapping the membraneflashing portion and one of the interior flashing portions of eachcorner flashing member. The window is then secured in the opening afterthe flashing is completed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a fragmentary perspective cut-away view of a frame wallsection including a window rough opening according to the prior art;

FIG. 2 is an isometric view of a pre-molded corner flashing memberaccording to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a side elevation view of the corner flashing member of FIG. 2depicting the back side of the interior flashing portion;

FIG. 4 is a rear elevation view of the corner flashing member of FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary perspective cut-away view of a frame wallsection including a window rough opening with corner flashing membersaccording to an embodiment of the present invention FIG. 6 is afragmentary perspective cut-away view of the frame wall section depictedin FIG. 5 with sealing tape positioned between the corner flashingmembers to seal the bottom of the rough opening according to anembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary perspective cut-away view of the frame wallsection depicted in FIG. 6 with sealing tape sealing the verticalperiphery of the rough opening and with corner flashing memberspositioned in the upper corners of the opening; and

FIG. 8 is a fragmentary perspective cut-away view of the frame wallsection depicted in FIG. 7 with a window secured in the opening.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Referring to FIG. 1, a section of typical frame building constructionhaving a window rough opening defined therein is depicted with portionscut away to show the various components. Wall 10 generally includesframe 12, interior membrane 14, exterior membrane 16, and exterior wallcovering 18. Frame 12 generally includes one or more horizontal plates20 positioned along the top and bottom of wall 10 with a plurality ofvertical stud members 22 extending therebetween. Window rough opening 24is framed at the bottom with a generally horizontal sill 26 and at thetop with a generally horizontal header 28. Sill 26 and header 28 alongwith studs 22 on either side of opening 24 present generally inwardlyfacing surfaces 29, which intersect at interior corners 29 a and defineperiphery 29 b of opening 24. Plates 20 and studs 22 are typically wood,but may also be metal sections, particularly where wall 10 is notload-bearing. Interior membrane 14 is typically one or more layers ofgypsum wallboard or plaster, but may also be any other suitable materialsuch as wood paneling.

Exterior membrane 16 is a generally continuous layer of material withinwall 10 that may function to retard the flow of air through interstitialopenings in wall 10, and that may also function as a water resistantbarrier to intrusion of bulk water or moisture into wall 10 from theexterior. Membrane 16 presents an exterior surface 30, and generallyincludes one or more layers of sheathing 32 and a layer of wrap material34. Sheathing 32 is typically oriented strand board (OSB) or plywood inlight construction, but may also be gypsum sheathing, extrudedpolystyrene foam, asphalt impregnated fiber board, cement board, or anyother suitable sheathing material. Wrap material 34 is typically thinspun bonded polyolefin sheeting such as Tyvek®, but may also be anyother thin material suitable for use in wall construction, such asasphalt impregnated felt or other building paper material. At wallopenings, such as window rough opening 24, wrap material 34 may beeither wrapped inwardly into the opening and terminated on the inwardlyfacing surface 29 of opening 24 as depicted in FIG. 1 along side edge 36or may be terminated at the opening edge with wrapping inwardly, asdepicted in FIG. 1 along bottom edge 38. Exterior wall covering 18 isgenerally applied as a finish layer to wall 10, and may include wood,plastic, or metal siding, stucco, masonry products such as brick, or anyother material suitable for the exterior of a structure.

Referring to FIG. 2, a pre-molded corner flashing member 40 according toan embodiment of the present invention is depicted. Corner flashingmember 40 generally includes a pair of interior flashing portions 42,44, and a membrane flashing portion 46. Interior flashing portions 42,44, intersect along an interior corner 48, which presents a first corneraxis denoted A-A in the drawing. Membrane flashing portion 46 intersectseach of interior flashing portions 42, 44, along exterior corners 50,52, presenting second and third corner axes, denoted B-B and C-C in thedrawing, respectively. Corner axes A-A, B-B, and C-C, intersect at asingle point 54 coplanar with membrane flashing portion 46.

Interior flashing portions 42, 44, may be positioned at substantially aright angle relative to each other to conform with the right anglecorners of a typical window or door rough opening. Similarly, membraneflashing portion 46 may be positioned at substantially a right angle toeach of interior flashing portions 42, 44, to conform with the rightangle edges along the periphery of a typical window or door roughopening. It will be appreciated, however, that interior flashingportions 42, 44, and membrane flashing portion 46, may be positioned atany desired angle relative to each other to conform with window or dooropening corners that do not form right angles.

In an embodiment of the invention, interior flashing portions 42, 44,are generally rectangular or square with dimensions preferably in arange of about two (2) to eight (8) centimeters, and more preferablyabout five (5) centimeters. In turn, membrane flashing portion 46 may begenerally equilateral L-shaped with dimensions preferably in a range ofabout four (4) to sixteen (16) centimeters, and more preferably aboutten (10) centimeters. Corners 56 of interior flashing portions 42, 44,and corners 58 of membrane flashing portion 46 may be radiused asdepicted in FIG. 2, with a preferable radius dimension of about one (1)centimeter, to inhibit penetration of the sealing tape by sharp cornersof corner flashing member 40. These radiused corners may also enablemore of the sealing tape to adhere to exterior surface 30 of membrane 16or inwardly facing surfaces 29 of rough opening 24. Interior corner 48may also be radiused, with a preferable radius dimension of about four(4) millimeters.

In an embodiment, corner flashing member 40 is made from UV stabilizedpolymer material and is molded or vacuum formed into the desired shapein a single, seamless, continuous piece. The thickness of interiorflashing portions 42, 44, and membrane flashing portion 46 is in a rangeof from about 0.01 millimeters to about 0.25 millimeters.

In an embodiment, texturing or surface patterns are provided on all orportions of front side 60 of interior flashing portions 42, 44, andfront side 62 of membrane flashing portion 46 to enhance adhesion withsealing tape. Further, a tacky substance such as glue or other adhesivemay be applied to back sides 64 of interior flashing portions 42, 44,and back side 66 of membrane flashing portion 46 to temporarily hold thecorner flashing member in position in the corner of a rough openingwithout the need for penetrating fasteners, which may lead to leaking atthe point of penetration.

As depicted in FIGS. 5-8, corner flashing member 40 may be used inconnection with conventional sealing tape during the installation ofexterior windows 68 or doors (not shown) in rough opening 24 of wall 10to inhibit intrusion of water and moisture to wall 10 from the exterior.Corner flashing member 40 provides for a seamless corner 70 that joinsinwardly facing surfaces 29 of rough opening 24 to exterior surface 30of membrane 16.

In an embodiment, corner flashing member 40 is positioned in both bottomleft corner 72 and bottom right corner 74 of rough opening 24 with backside 66 of membrane flashing portion 46 confronting exterior surface 30of membrane 16, first corner axis A-A extending along interior openingcorner 29 a, back sides 64 of interior flashing portions 42, 44,confronting a separate inwardly facing surfaces 29 and second and thirdcorner axes B-B, C-C, extending along periphery 29 b of rough opening 24as depicted in FIG. 5. Bottom corners, 72, 74, of rough opening 24 aregenerally where water and moisture most often penetrate into wall 10.Corner flashing members 40 may also be similarly positioned in uppercorners 76 of rough opening 24 as depicted in FIG. 7 if desired. Asdepicted in FIG. 6, a first length 76 of sealing tape may then bepositioned as a sealing member 78 extending between corner flashingmembers 40 along periphery 29 b of rough opening 24 at bottom edge 38,overlapping onto interior flashing portion 44 and membrane flashingportion 46 of each corner flashing member 40. Sealing member 78 adheresand seals to both corner flashing members 40, exterior surface 30 ofmembrane 16 and inwardly facing surface 29 to form a “pan flashing” atthe bottom of rough opening 24, effecting a “pan” or “dam” effect todivert water to the exterior wall surface and away from the interiorwall cavities. Thus, when used in connection with sealing member 78,corner flashing members 40 may provides a system that forming acontinuous water and moisture retarding barrier along the sides of arough window or door opening.

If desired, additional sealing members 80, 82, may be positioned alongperiphery 29 b on the opposing sides of corner flashing members 40 so asto extend in the direction opposite sealing member 78. Sealing members80, 82, may be positioned so as to overlap interior flashing portion 42and membrane flashing portion 46 of corner flashing members 40 asdepicted in FIG. 7. With corner flashing members 40 and sealing members78, 80, 82, in place, window 68 may be secured in rough opening 24 tocomplete the installation as depicted in FIG. 8.

Sealing members 78, 80, 82, may be formed from any sealing tape orsealing material suitable for the purpose. Preferably, the sealing tapeis a conventional pre-creased, but otherwise generally non-flexible tapesuch as Tyvek® StraightFlash™ made by E.I. DuPont de Nemours and Companyof Wilmington, Deleware. Alternatively, while a more expensive option,flexible tape such as FlexWrap™ by E.I. DuPont could be used. It willalso be understood that any kind of flat flashing tape could be used anda crease could be effected in the flat tape as part of the step ofapplying the sealing members.

The thin wall structure of corner flashing member 40 may insure thatcorner flashing member 40 does not interfere with the installation of awindow or door in rough opening 24, or otherwise require a change in thewindow or door manufacturer's specifications for rough opening 24 orspecified installation procedure for the door or window. In addition,corner flashing member 40 does not require the use of nails, screws orother fasteners that would penetrate corner flashing member 40 andcreate a potential avenue for water to enter the interior or cavity ofthe wall.

Although the present invention has been described in terms of thepreferred embodiment, it will be understood that variation and changescan be made to the preferred embodiment and that the scope of theinvention is set forth in the claims.

1. A flashing system for an opening in an exterior wall of a structure,the exterior wall including a generally planar membrane presenting anexterior surface, a periphery of the opening defined by at least a pairof generally inwardly facing surfaces intersecting each other at anangle so as to define at least one interior opening corner, the systemcomprising: a pre-formed corner flashing member made from polymermaterial in a single continuous seamless piece and including a pair ofgenerally planar interior flashing portions each presenting a front andan opposing back side, and a generally planar membrane flashing portionpresenting a front and an opposing back side, the pair of interiorflashing portions intersecting along a first corner presenting a firstcorner axis, the membrane flashing portion intersecting one of the pairof interior flashing portions along a second corner presenting a secondcorner axis, and the membrane flashing portion intersecting the other ofthe pair of interior flashing portions along a third corner presenting athird corner axis, wherein the first, second, and third corner axesintersect at a common point, and wherein when the corner flashing memberis positioned in the interior opening corner with the back side of themembrane flashing portion confronting the exterior surface of themembrane and the first corner axis extending along the interior openingcorner, the back sides of each of the interior flashing portionsconfront a separate one of the pair of inwardly facing surfaces definingthe opening and the second and third corner axes extending along theperiphery of the opening; and at least a pair of adhesive sealingmembers for flashing the periphery of the opening on either side of thecorner flashing member, each sealing member sealingly engagable with themembrane flashing portion and one of the interior flashing portions ofthe corner flashing member.
 2. The system of claim 1, wherein theopening has a pair of interior corners, and wherein the system comprisesa pair of corner flashing members, each corner flashing member forflashing a separate one of the pair of interior corners.
 3. The systemof claim 3, wherein the pair of adhesive sealing members includes afirst elongate sealing member for flashing the periphery of the openingbetween the pair of interior corners, the first sealing member having apair of opposing ends, each end having a portion sealingly engagablewith the membrane flashing portion and one of the interior flashingportions of a separate one of the pair of corner flashing members. 4.The system of claim 4, including second and third elongate sealingmembers for flashing the periphery of the opening extending away fromeach corner flashing member in a direction opposite the first sealingmember.
 5. The system of claim 1, wherein at least a portion of the backside of at least one of the interior flashing portions or the membraneflashing portion is substantially covered with an adhesive material. 6.The system of claim 1, wherein the second and third corners of thecorner flashing member are radiused.
 7. The system of claim 7, wherein aradius of the second and third corners is about one centimeter.
 8. Thesystem of claim 1, wherein the interior flashing portions intersect atsubstantially a right angle, and wherein the membrane flashing portionintersects each of the interior flashing portions at substantially aright angle.
 9. The system of claim 9, wherein the interior flashingportions are substantially rectangular in shape, and wherein themembrane portion is substantially L-shaped.
 10. The system of claim 10,wherein the interior flashing portions are substantially equilateral.11. The system of claim 1, wherein the polymer material is UV resistant.12. The system of claim 1, wherein the at least a pair of elongatesealing members are pre-creased.
 13. The system of claim 1, wherein atleast a portion of the front side of the interior flashing portions orthe membrane flashing portion is textured.
 14. A method of installing awindow in an opening defined in an exterior wall of a structure, theexterior wall including a membrane presenting an exterior surface, theopening having a polygonal periphery defined by a plurality of generallyinwardly facing surfaces and including at least a pair of interioropening corners, the method comprising steps of: providing a pair ofcorner flashing members formed from polymer material, each cornerflashing member including a pair of generally planar interior flashingportions each presenting a front and an opposing back side, and agenerally planar membrane flashing portion presenting a front and anopposing back side, the pair of interior flashing portions intersectingalong a first corner presenting a first corner axis, the membraneflashing portion intersecting one of the pair of interior flashingportions along a second corner presenting a second corner axis, and themembrane flashing portion intersecting the other of the pair of interiorflashing portions along a third corner presenting a third corner axis,wherein the first, second, and third corner axes intersect at a commonpoint and wherein the interior flashing portions and the membraneflashing portion are integrally formed together in a single, seamlesscontinuous piece; positioning each of the corner flashing members in aseparate one of the interior opening corners with the back side of themembrane flashing portion confronting the exterior surface of themembrane, the first corner axis extending along the interior openingcorner, the back sides of each of the interior flashing portionsconfronting a separate one of the inwardly facing surfaces defining theopening and the second and third corner axes extending along theperiphery of the opening; flashing the periphery of the opening betweenthe corner flashing members with a first length of sealing tape, aportion of the sealing tape overlapping the membrane flashing portionand one of the interior flashing portions of each corner flashingmember; and securing the window in the opening after the flashing iscompleted.
 15. The method of claim 14, further comprising the step offlashing the periphery of the opening by extending away from each cornerflashing member in a direction opposite the first length of sealing tapewith second and third lengths of sealing tape.
 16. The method of claim14, wherein the step of providing the corner flashing members frompolymer material is performed by vacuum forming the corner flashingmembers.
 17. The method of claim 14, wherein the step of providing thecorner flashing members from polymer material is performed by injectionmolding the corner flashing members.
 18. A water intrusion resistantwindow system for an exterior wall of a structure, the exterior wallincluding a generally planar membrane presenting an exterior surfacewith an opening defined therein, the periphery of the opening defined bydefined by a plurality of generally inwardly facing surfaces andincluding at least a pair of interior opening corners, the systemcomprising: a window dimensioned so as to be receivable in the opening;a pair of pre-formed corner flashing members each made from polymermaterial in a single continuous seamless piece adapted to flash each ofthe pair of interior opening corners, each corner flashing membercomprising a pair of generally planar interior flashing portions eachpresenting a front and an opposing back side, and a generally planarmembrane flashing portion presenting a front and an opposing back side,the pair of interior flashing portions intersecting along a first cornerpresenting a first corner axis, the membrane flashing portionintersecting one of the pair of interior flashing portions along asecond corner presenting a second corner axis, and the membrane flashingportion intersecting the other of the pair of interior flashing portionsalong a third corner presenting a third corner axis, wherein the first,second, and third corner axes intersect at a common point, and whereinwhen the corner flashing member is positioned in the interior openingcorner with the back side of the membrane flashing portion confrontingthe exterior surface of the membrane and the first corner axis extendingalong the interior opening corner, the back sides of each of theinterior flashing portions confront a separate one of the pair ofinwardly facing surfaces defining the opening and the second and thirdcorner axes extend along the periphery of the opening; and a firstelongate sealing member adapted to flash the periphery of the openingbetween the pair of interior corners, the first sealing member having apair of opposing ends, each end having a portion sealingly engagablewith the membrane flashing portion and one of the interior flashingportions of a separate one of the pair of corner flashing members. 19.The system of claim 18, further comprising second and third elongatesealing members adapted to flash the periphery of the opening extendingaway from each corner flashing member in a direction opposite the firstsealing member, the second and third sealing members each having a pairof opposing ends.
 20. The system of claim 19, wherein each of theelongate sealing members are pre-creased along a longitudinal axisdefined between the pair of opposed ends.
 21. The system of claim 18,wherein the second and third corners of each corner flashing member areradiused.
 22. The system of claim 21, wherein the radius of the secondand third corners is about one centimeter.
 23. The system of claim 18,wherein the interior flashing portions of each corner flashing memberintersect at substantially a right angle, and wherein the membraneflashing portion intersects each of the interior flashing portions atsubstantially a right angle.
 24. The system of claim 23, wherein theinterior flashing portions are substantially rectangular in shape, andwherein the membrane portion is substantially L-shaped.
 25. The systemof claim 23, wherein the interior flashing portions are substantiallyequilateral.
 26. A pre-molded corner flashing member for a flashing aninterior corner of a rough opening in an exterior wall of a structure,the exterior wall including a generally planar membrane presenting anexterior surface, the periphery of the opening defined by at least apair of inwardly facing surfaces intersecting each other at an angle soas to define the interior opening corner, the flashing member made frompolymer material in a single continuous seamless piece and including apair of generally planar interior flashing portions each presenting afront and an opposing back side, and a generally planar membraneflashing portion presenting a front and an opposing back side, the pairof interior flashing portions intersecting along a first cornerpresenting a first corner axis, the membrane flashing portionintersecting one of the pair of interior flashing portions along asecond corner presenting a second corner axis, and the membrane flashingportion intersecting the other of the pair of interior flashing portionsalong a third corner presenting a third corner axis, wherein the first,second, and third corner axes intersect at a common point, and whereinwhen the corner flashing member is positioned in the interior openingcorner with the back side of the membrane flashing portion confrontingthe exterior surface of the membrane and the first corner axis extendingalong the interior opening corner, the back sides of each of theinterior flashing portions confront a separate one of the pair ofinwardly facing surfaces defining the opening and the second and thirdcorner axes extend along the periphery of the opening.
 27. Thepre-molded corner flashing member of claim 26, wherein the interiorflashing portion and the membrane flashing portions have a thicknessdimension in a range of from about 0.01 millimeters to about 0.25millimeters.
 28. The pre-molded corner flashing member of claim 26,wherein each of the interior flashing portions presents a radiusedcorner.
 29. The pre-molded corner flashing member of claim 28, wherein aradius dimension of the radiused corner is about one centimeter.
 30. Thepre-molded corner flashing member of claim 26, wherein the first cornerof the flashing member is radiused.
 31. The pre-molded corner flashingmember of claim 30, wherein a radius dimension of the first corner isabout four millimeters.
 32. The pre-molded corner flashing member ofclaim 26, wherein the interior flashing portions are generally square.33. The pre-molded corner flashing member of claim 32, wherein theinterior flashing portions have a width dimension in a range of abouttwo to eight centimeters.
 34. The pre-molded corner flashing member ofclaim 26, wherein the membrane flashing portion is substantiallyequilateral L-shaped.
 35. The pre-molded corner flashing member of claim34, wherein the membrane flashing portion has a width dimension in arange of about four to sixteen centimeters.
 36. The pre-molded cornerflashing member of claim 26, wherein the flashing member is made from UVstabilized polymer material.